Haunted
by BirdInSkies
Summary: She didn't want to get close to anyone anymore. But she just couldn't get him out of her head. Daryl/OC
1. Chapter 1

It got dark when I finally reached the river. I was so thirsty that I didn't even care if the water was infected or whatever. I kneeled down by the stream and reached for the water with one hand. I kept my M14 rifle in the other hand, with one finger close to the trigger.  
>I saw the smoke from the fire someplace near the river, probably some camp. I already knew about the people who were there. I saw them not long ago in Atlanta. Now it was time that they knew about me, too.<br>My name is Anne Redway. When all this started, I was on leave from the military with my brother Joshua. Our parents died when we were young. We took care of each other and never left each other's side. That's the reason I join the army, so we could stay together. But life is never that easy. It wasn't long after we came back that all these walkers started running around the city, killing people and infecting them. We tried to help by joining the marines that came to the city, but we didn't last long. My brother was bitten while protecting some kid. And I had to pull the trigger to stop my brother from killing me in the end. My first thought was to kill myself. What was the point of staying alive? The world was going down to shit anyway. But then I remembered everything I've been through. People I loved like family died for a cause. And I was not a bloody coward, I'd carry on even if I had to kill every last motherfucker that came into my way.  
>That's pretty much it. Now I was trying to find survivors and carry on.<br>I was distracted by a sudden scream. It was coming from the camp. I ran as hell to get there with my weapon ready to fire. When I finally reached the scene, all I could see was chaos. There were walkers everywhere and before I knew it, I instinctively firing at first that came within my sight. I caught a glimpse of a little girl in her mother's arms screaming. A walker was closing in on them. I moved quickly to get a clear shot and dropped the walker right before them. I stood up in front, covering the girl and her mother with my own body. Another walker bit a woman, but when I dropped him, it was already too late for her.  
>The walkers just kept on coming, but all of the sudden, four men came out of the forest from the opposite side. Without hesitation they started killing the walkers. I dropped some more of them and looked around the camp. Bodies of dead people were lying all over the ground, but I didn't see any walkers anymore. After a while I decided to lower my weapon and I turned to face the girl. She was still crying, holding onto her mother. I placed a hand gently on her head, trying to calm her down a little.<br>"Are you two alright?" I asked the mother. She nodded, tears falling down her cheeks.  
>"Thank you." I could barely hear her faint shaken voice, but I nodded as well. I made sure that they weren't in any danger anymore and decided to walk around a bit. Adrenalin was still pumping in my blood but I was used to these kinds of situations.<br>While I was walking around, a man who I assumed was a cop by the way he was dressed, stopped me. A little boy had his arms wrapped around him and a woman with dark hair was standing near them, too.  
>"Thank you for your help." he said with exhausted voice. Once again I nodded, than looked at the little boy.<br>"I'm going to walk around a bit, make sure it's safe."  
>"Yeah, I'll go, too, just..." he started but I stopped him.<br>"You stay with the boy, besides I was trained for this."  
>He nodded after a while and when I started to walk away, he asked me about my name.<br>"Anne Redway." I replied, not looking back or stopping.  
>I walked a bit further into the forest, passing along the dead walkers' bodies, made a quick sweep of the area and when I was satisfied, I headed back for the camp. I was tired. I didn't have a proper sleep for two days and every time I tried to sleep, nightmares haunted me. Yawning and rubbing my eyes, I missed the sight of a walker quietly moving behind my back. I was quickly brought back from my thoughts when an arrow cut through the air next to me. I turned with my gun ready in my hands, but the walker was already dead. I sighed and faced the man who just saved my ass. I couldn't see him well in the dark, but I caught a glimpse of his brown colored short hair when he passed near me to get his arrow back.<br>"You missed one." he said and his confident voice sounded in my ears. It reminded me of one of my teammates, Gary. He was always positive about everything, sometimes he sounded pure arrogant, but he always did his job and cared for everybody, though he didn't show it.  
>"I owe you one." I replied watching his every move carefully. He moved with the same confidence as he spoke.<br>"You a marine?" he asked, measuring my looks. I wasn't surprised he figured it out, after all I had my uniform on and my dog tags were swinging around my neck. My Task Force tattoo on left arm was also a big sign, though he probably couldn't see that in the dark.  
>"I was, yeah. I'm freelance now." With no one to serve anymore, I could finally follow my own orders. He started to walk away and I followed him. "I'm Anne, by the way."<br>He looked at me once again, but didn't reply. Only after a while I could barely hear him say, that his name is Daryl. We walked the rest of the way in silence and once we were in camp, I parted with him with a nod.

I met the cop from earlier while I was looking for a place to sleep.

"I'd like to thank you again for your help earlier." he said politely.

"No big deal," I stopped when I realized that I still didn't know his name.

"Rick Grimes." he said quickly and reached out to me with his hand. I took it with a smile.

"Is your boy alright?" I asked since I didn't see the kids outside. They were probably sleeping by now, if they were able to fall asleep.

"Yeah, he's a tough boy. You should get some rest yourself, you look worn out."

"I will, but I'll stay outside, thank you." I said before he offered me a place in the van or in other of their cars.

He tried some more to persuade me, but I was better off sleeping outside. I was used to it and protecting others was in my blood.

After Rick left, I settled down by one of the trees. I was a bit happy knowing that I wasn't the only one staying outside.

"I'll take the first watch." said Daryl who was sitting near the van. I didn't have enough strength to protest so I just nodded and closed my eyes, holding a sidearm in one hand.


	2. Chapter 2

"_Just pull the trigger, Annie. It's alright." I heard his voice but I couldn't see his face. I knew it was Josh, my dear brother. He was begging me to kill him and I couldn't. _

"_Please, I don't want to be one of them." he said and his voice was getting closer. I held my sidearm, aiming it forward to the darkness. Suddenly, Josh's face appeared before my eyes. But he didn't have his usual gentle smile, his eyes weren't lively as always, he didn't have any expression except hunger. This wasn't my brother, not anymore. With that thought in my mind, I pulled the trigger. The bullet pierced through his head and his dead body fell on the ground._

_I looked down, tears leaking from my eyes. His eyes were open, watching my every move. He looked normal, his skin was pale, but there were no traces of infection, only the bullet hole reminded. _

"_Why did you kill me, Annie?" _

I suddenly woke up, squeezing the sidearm so hard that my hand started to hurt. I couldn't get enough air into my lungs, I started coughing and trying not to throw up. When I calmed down, I wiped a tear from my cheek and looked around. Nobody except Daryl was around.

"Fuck." I cursed, trying not look at Daryl. I got up and walked away as quickly as I could, making my way through the forest. I stopped once I was near the river, kneeled down and washed my face five times until I was fully awake. I watched my reflection in the water mirror.

"How pathetic are you now, Anne." I said to my reflection. "Scared of a dream."

I stayed by the river until I heard voices coming from the camp, it sounded like an argument.

Once I got back, I saw a group of people surrounding one man, whose name I didn't know.

"What happened?" I asked Daryl, hoping he forgot about my behavior before.

"He's been bitten." He answered and pointed at the man with his crossbow.

"So? Just kill him." I said and all eyes were suddenly looking at me.

"See? Told you so." said Daryl and the man backed away.

"We can't kill him, he's a sick man, he's not a walker yet." Said Rick and I let out a small laugh.

"You think you can cure him or something? Even if you could, you won't find the cure before he'll turn to one of those monsters, trust me." I remembered my brother and the time when he was bitten. "Do you know what will happen to you now? All the suffering and pain, is that what you want?" I turned to the man, slowly approaching him with a gun in my hand.

He was shaking his head, sobbing quietly.

"Don't do it, Anne. He's not a monster." Rick stood between us, pushing me away from the man.

"My brother wasn't a monster and he had to die. Why not him?" I raised my voice. Rick kept standing I my way, looking into my eyes. Nobody said a word for a while and I was getting annoyed by the silence. I turned and walked away, cursing the whole time.

I only got back when they had everything settled between them. That man, whose name I learnt is Jim was still alive. Rick was the new appointed leader of some sort and the plan was to go to the CDC. It was a bullshit plan, but I reminded silent. I didn't give a damn anymore, as long as I was alive, I was happy.

We packed all our stuff and got into the cars. Without asking for permission I got into Daryl's car. He didn't seem to mind it though and I came to like his company.

Along the way, I tried to get some sleep. Daryl looked like he was deep in thoughts, probably thinking about his lost brother. I heard stories about his brother being left in Atlanta. Though from what I heard, everyone thinks he's dead, or they'd preferred his being dead.

"You'll find your brother." I said when I finally gave up trying to fall asleep. "I'm sure of it."

I felt his gaze on me, but I didn't turn my face away from the window.

"Sorry about your brother, what happened to him?" Daryl was the first person who asked about him and probably if it was anyone else, I wouldn't answer. And truth be told, I didn't even think he'd care. Maybe he doesn't, but it was a conversation starter of some sort.

"We were cleaning the hospital when he was bitten. The order was to kill anyone who was bitten, scratched or even spited on by walkers." I tried to sound like I didn't care, that it was behind me. But just remembering the moment I had to kill him was bringing my nightmares back. I bit my lower lip, trying to think of something else.

"And honestly, I agree completely. We let the infection spread, we may as well kill ourselves and save the walkers some troubles." I added after a while.

"Yeah, no shit." replied Daryl with a laugh.

We stayed quiet for the rest of the way. And I was surprised how normal it seemed. The silence wasn't awkward, it was nice, just like I remembered it. When I was in Task Force, I was in a team with four other guys, including Josh. We could spend hours in silence and we wouldn't mind it.

But all this time I tried to remember the one thing I couldn't do anymore, care.


	3. Chapter 3

When we got to the CDC, it was already getting dark and before we knew it, walkers had us surrounded. The city was empty except for the dead lurking around. Behind us was a large building, but it seemed to be closed. Rick was desperately trying to get the door open but it was worthless.

"You let us into a graveyard." yelled Daryl after he took down a walker that showed up. Shane was walking right to him, trying to protect Rick.

"He made a call." said Shane, but it didn't take the blame off Rick.

"It was the wrong damn call." added Daryl and I completely agreed. We wouldn't be in this shithole town if it was my call. But since I decided to follow him and not say a damn thing, I couldn't really say a word now.

Shane was trying to bring Rick to act. We needed to get out of this town before dark, we all knew it. But Rick, he was trying to convince us that there was still someone alive. It was too late though, the walkers got to us first.

I moved up front, protecting the rest of the group and aimed my rifle.

"Daryl, Shane, keep them covered." I said and the two of them were by my side in seconds, If I wasn't the one leading the way, I could at least take this assault into my own hands until Rick would get his shit back together.

"Don't waste ammo, make the shots count." I added, watching that one walker that was getting into my shot. "Let them come closer."

When I was sure I wouldn't miss, I fired. The bullet cut through the walker's head and he dropped down. Daryl and Shane started firing after a while, too. I was glad to see that they took my advice. It took us only one shot for one walker, which was good.

I heard Rick shouting from the back. The walkers were getting annoying. There was no way we'd survive this if we stayed a little longer. But just when I was ready to take the command, the door opened and the street got covered in light.

Jenner was the name of the man who saved our asses. He gave us shelter, food and beds to sleeps in. But I saw something that the others didn't in his eyes. The loss he's been through. He must've lost somebody dear to him, he had that look in his eyes.

The rest of the camp was enjoying the meals and drinking wine, they were having fun. I was sitting in the back corner, eating the last bits of the meal I had and my plan was to hit my room early.

During the time I was there, I was watching Jenner carefully. He sat apart from the others, his look was distant, he wasn't enjoying this evening as much as the others did. And I didn't know why, which made me a bit uneasy.

As soon as I was full, I left the room unnoticed. I hit the showers first, cleaning the dirt, blood and bad memories away. As much as liked the memories to go away, it was impossible.

My room was small, with only one bed, a small table in the corner, an empty shelf and well, the rest of the room was mostly the same empty space. I was used to worse.

I put my stuff on the back and took my rifle to the table. I did the only thing that could calm me down, clean my rifle.

I was done quicker than I though and soon I had nothing to do. The rest was already in their rooms, probably sleeping. I went out quietly, trying not to wake anyone. The light in the hallway was automatic, so it lit as soon as I opened the door and scared the shit out of me. I made a few steps but then I heard another door opening behind me. I instinctively reached for my gun, but then I remembered I left it in my room.

The door opened slowly and a small figure came walking out of it. It was the little girl, I think her name was Sophia, carrying her plush toy with her. She looked tired and kept rubbing her eyes and yawning.

"Where are you heading to, little one?" I asked quietly. She walked closer to me.

"I'm thirsty. I wanted to get something to drink." She replied. I looked down the hallway. The kitchen was actually my destination, too.

"You want to be my escort?" I said with a smile. "But we need to keep a low profile."

Sophia replied with a nod and saluted, smiling. I reached out my hand and she grabbed it, squeezing it tightly.

We walked to the kitchen together and while I was getting us some juice, Sophia sat behind the table.

"What's your name?" asked Sophia when I placed a glass in front of her.

"Anne. You're Sophia, right?" Sophia nodded and drank from the glass.

"Do you think we'll be alright?" I was surprised at her sudden question. She was looking directly into my eyes. I sipped from my glass and put it back on the table, taking my time to answer.

"Even if surrounded by hundreds of enemies, you can't give up defending what's dear to you, soldier." I started. "If you promise me that you will protect your loved ones, I'll promise that I'll protect you."

Sophia nodded immediately and said: "I promise."

"Well, then from now on, you're a marine. And marines are family, they protect each other. I won't let anything happen to you, or your mother."

Sophia nodded once again with a big smile on her face. She drank the rest of her juice, said good night to me and ran off to her room. I watched her until she went behind the corner.

"Protect them? Are you fucking serious?" said Daryl with a grin on his face. I didn't know he was around, he probably heard the whole conversation. He had a bottle of wine in his hand, half empty. He placed it in the middle of table when he sat down and pushed it over to me. I caught it before it could fall over the table.

"You're gonna drink or what?"

I put the bottle to my mouth and drank. The alcohol warmed my body and I felt a need to cough. Daryl just laughed, asking for the bottle so I handed it over to him.

"I said I'd protect Sophia and her mother, I think the rest of you can handle yourselves. Especially you with that crossbow of yours. It's not a bloody grenade launcher, but it can do the job."

He didn't say anything, he just grinned and sipped from the bottle.

"Why are you even here, anyway? I mean, you don't like the type to hang around for too long. I figured you'd be long gone by now, minding your own business."

"Yeah, no shit. But if I didn't stick around I wouldn't have this." He said lifting the bottle above his head.

"You know, I knew someone like you. He wasn't a team player. You know when that changed? He almost got blown to pieces, but I saved his ass. And after that, he was the best damn team leader I've seen. Except my brother of course, the one that I killed. Yeah, I killed my brother, so fucking what? He was turning to one of those bastards anyway, I bet you'd do the same." I stopped for a moment to look at Daryl. He just sat there without a word, listening to all the crap I was saying.

"Give it here." I pointed at the bottle in his hands and he handed it to me. I drank it whole in one go and stood up to leave. But the alcohol did its thing and the whole kitchen was spinning around me. I tried to grab a chair, but I missed badly and almost hit the ground hard. Daryl caught me with one hand around my wrist. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for second. When the alcohol settled in my body, I was back at my own feet, pushing Daryl's hand away. I felt his presence close to me, our faces must've been only inches apart, but I couldn't look at him.

"Get away from me, I don't need your help." I yapped and made my way to the hallway. I turned around to see if he was following me, but he just stood there, watching me walk away.


	4. Chapter 4

_"Are we clear?" I heard a faint voice behind me. I still couldn't hear clearly because of all the grenades that landed near us. I tried to look for my teammates.  
>Our team leader, my brother Josh, was standing behind me, looking for enemy movements. Gary was lying on the ground, but he didn't have any serious injuries. Patrick offered him a hand and helped his stand up. Roy was on the turret, scanning the area.<em>

_"I think so." replied Roy after a while. When I got my hearing back, I turned to face the men._

_"Is everybody alright?" I asked, not paying attention to my own injuries.  
><em>

_"Yeah. This was fucking close." said Patrick and everyone agreed. Josh pointed to the area in front of me. I understood and got my weapon ready. We couldn't be sure if there weren't some enemies left, so me and Roy kept scanning for any movements.  
><em>

_"You two, on me. We'll check these buildings. Keep us covered." ordered Josh and the three of them moved right into the building. They were on their own inside, but they could they care of themselves.  
><em>

_About five minutes have passed when I heard Roy cursing back in the humvee.  
><em>

_"It's fucking jammed!" he was referring to his turret, Our equipment wasn't in its best when they sent us here, but nobody cared. The higher ups didn't care.  
><em>

_"Well, do something about it or get on your saw." I replied but kept my eyes on the empty space. I had a bad feeling about this all before and this situation didn't alm me down at all.  
><em>

_I heard his playing with the turret so I turned around to look at what's he been doing.  
><em>

_"What the fuck Roy? Stop playing around and get on your other weapon, you'll deal with it later." Just when I said it I heard Roy shout my name. It was too late though, the bullet scratched my arm and I fell back on the ground. Sniper. I tried to get back behind the cover and while I did, I saw another bullet hit Roy in the head. I didn't have time to warn him and he didn't have time to get in the car, to find a cover of his own. I watched his lifeless body drop into the humvee.  
><em>

_"Sniper, he got Roy." was all I could say in the comms, before a loud noise interrupted me. Everything went nuts from that moment. An RPG round hit the building where the rest of my teammates were. A strong wave hit me and I flew a few meters before landing on the ground. My sight was blurry. There was dust everywhere and all I could see was a dark figure coming out of the ruins. I couldn't recognize who it was. I blacked out after that._

I woke up, covered in sweat. My dreams, or nightmares to be more accurate, were getting more real every night. I could feel the hot air on my skin, every scratch that covered my face, adrenaline driving through my veins, even that feeling of guilt and terror playing in my mind. I had a cold shower once I was out of the bed and went to the kitchen were the rest was having a breakfast. Just one look at all that food made me want to throw up and I was sure it wasn't from the alcohol I had last night. I thought I was getting better in dealing with my nightmares and memories, but I wasn't sure what triggered these reactions.

I stopped remembering things once Jenner started talking about the walkers. It got me interested, listening to everything that happens once you get bitten. You lose yourself and are left with only the hunger. Killing these things was not a mistake. They were not humans anymore.

After the lecture we sort of got back to enjoying this time without the walkers. But not for long, the air was soon filled with frustration and fear. The lights went out and when we wanted answers, the only thing we got was a time of our death.

I couldn't believe this, we got this far, running away from the walkers and now we were supposed to die doing nothing.

We were back at the lab with Jenner when the door closed behind us and we were suddenly trapped like rats in a cage.

"You son of a bitch! Let us out of here!" shouted Daryl and ran over to Jenner. Shane stopped him and pushed him back.

"Hey Jenner, open that door now." said Rick with a calmer attitude. I looked at the timer on the wall, just twenty eight minutes left. I could sort of understand Jenner's reasons for this, but was there a need to include us into his suicide attempt?

I heard Sophia crying behind me. I looked around and she returned the look with watery eyes. Her mother, Carol, was holding onto her. This reminded me of the first time I came into the camp.

"You can't do this Jenner. I don't care if you want to take a coward's way out, but I don't. Non of us do." I said, moving closer to Jenner.

"She's right. We didn't fight for nothing all this time." agreed Rick. But still, Jenner didn't seem to agree. It didn't matter what we say to him.

Eventually, Shane and Daryl tried to break through the door, but it was pointless. The doors didn't break. I kneeled beside Sophia and put a hand on her shoulder. She was shaking and sobbing.

Daryl tried to attack Jenner once again, but this time even I stood up to stop him. I pushed him back with both hands and held onto him until he calmed down.

"Last night you said that it was only a matter of time before everyone you loved was dead." Jenner was referring to Rick. We all looked at him, hardly believing Jenner's words. I didn't know Rick that much, but if someone was more determinated to live than me, it was Rick.

"I had to keep hope alive, didn't I?" said Rick.

"There is no hope. There never was." Jenner was desperately trying to convince us of his truth. Rick didn't believe him though. And so didn't I.

"Maybe not for you, but some of us still have faith left in us." I sighed.

"You know how it feels to lose someone, don't you? Aren't you a soldier?"

"I've lost enough to know how it feels, yes. But those men died fighting for other people's safety. Their beliefs and duties got passed down to me and I have no intention to disappoint them. I swear to you, I will protect these people, I will get them out of this hell or I'll die trying, you hear me Jenner?" I almost couldn't believe my own words, but I said them. Maybe it was a marine in me talking or maybe it was a desperate try to get out of here. But I got Jenner's attention.

"Let us keep trying as long as we can." added Rick and Jenner finally gave up.

"I told you topside's locked down, I can't open those." he said and walked over to the console. He pushed a few buttons and the door opened. I didn't waste time standing around, I ran to the door motioning the others to keep moving. We got to the top, but like Jenner said, everything was locked. We tried everything to break the windows, but nothing worked. And then, Carol said she's got something that might help, grenade. She wanted to give it to Rick, but I stepped in.

"Do you even know how to use one of these? Besides I'm a faster runner." I pushed Rick back and told Carol to find some cover. Rick didn't try to stop me. I looked around to see if everyone was in a safe distance and then placed the grenade near the window and pulled out the pin. I turned on my heels and ran back to the others. I grabbed Daryl's hand and he pulled me over behind him just when the grenade went off. A massive pressure wave spread over the whole place and luckily it was enough to break the glass.

I thanked Daryl with a nod as I got back on my feet and we ran out through the broken window. Along the way we killed few walkers and got into cars. Just in time before the blast, a blonde woman who lost her sister in the walker's attack in camp, Andrea, and an older man, Dave, came running out of the building. The blast was enormous and it would definitely be a quick death. I smiled when I looked at the ruins of the building. Just another day on the job, I thought.


	5. Chapter 5

Not long after we got out of one mess, we've just got into another.

I backed as far as I could until my back hit the car. I slowly opened the door, so they would give me at least a little more cover from the walkers. I couldn't see them and I didn't dare to look around. Most of the camp was hiding under the cars and non of us breathed as we heard the walkers walking by.

It felt like an hour when the large group passed us and moved on. Finally, I turned around and right when I did, I heard Sophia's screams. One of the walkers that remained noticed her as she was trying to get from under the car. Unfortunately, my rifle didn't have a silencer on and she'd be dead before I found it. I saw Rick moving their way, so I stayed hidden. Sophia ran into the forest and the walker followed her. Another one joined the hunt when he heard Sophia screaming. Rick was right behind them and I didn't want to stay behind. Sophia was my responsibility after all.

But once I got into the forest, I soon lost sight of them. My tracking skills were good, but not perfect. I tracked them for a while, though. I was about to go back, when I saw Rick walking towards me.

"I lost her." he said, breathing heavily.

"Fuck, how could you lost her?' I asked, obviously upset. I didn't way for his answer, I knew we had to find her and soon. "I can't track her, I'm not that good in it."

"Daryl could." said Rick already on his way to find him. I stayed behind, watching every branch that moved in the wind and every bird that flew above my head. Sophia must've been somewhere in the forest because the birds weren't singing. It was a sign that something was moving around the forest.

When Rick got back with Daryl, they didn't waste time and started looking for her. Shane and Glenn also followed, together we could cover more area.

We returned to the place where Rick left her. Even I could see the clear footprints that led from the river back to the highway.

"Me and Daryl will keep on her tracks. The rest of you should go back." said Rick and I disagreed immediately.

"I'm staying. I'll help you look for her." I said determined. Rick looked like he had some complaints. "I'm not going back, no matter what you say."

Rick gave up and we could finally focus on the search. i was very impressed with Daryl's tracking skills. He saw things that were almost invisible for me and Rick. Even the best military training couldn't teach you all that. Along the way, we found a walker and our first thought was, that Sophia might be already dead or she turned into a walker herself. But after a close examination of the walker, Rick and Daryl didn't find any signs of Sophia. That was good thing, but we lost her tracks and couldn't follow anymore, it was getting dark and we eventually had to get back.

We got back to the highway and told them everything we found out, which was nothing. Carol was crying and she blamed Rick for leaving Sophia alone.

After a while, Rick's wife, Lori, took Carol into the RV to get some sleep. I stayed outside, watching the forest, not for more walkers to walk out of it, but for Sophia to miraculously appearing from somewhere, safe and sound.

"Hey, you not gonna sleep?" asked Daryl suddenly appearing behind me. When he mentioned sleep, I rubbed my tired eyes. I didn't realize how long was I without sleep again.

"I'm not tired." I said, obviously lying. Daryl grinned.

"Yeah, right." he walked around me and covered my view into the forest. I looked into his eyes which didn't show any emotions. I watched his figure standing above me, with his crossbow across one shoulder and his protective stance.

He didn't want to back off no matter what I said, so I gave up in the end and returned to his car. I stopped by the RV on the way, I could hear Carol's sobs from in there. I opened the door and hesitated before I walked in. Lori was still with her, but when she saw me, she stood up and left me alone with her. Was I that obvious?

I sat next to her bed and she lifted her head to look at me, still crying.

"We'll find her Carol, don't worry." I said, but my voice didn't sound reassuring.

"How can you say that? You don't know where she could go by now."

"You're right, we don't. But I saw Daryl following her tracks and trust me, army could use a scout like that, he'd save us a lot of troubles finding the mines." I laughed a little when I said it and Carol smiled a bit too, than nodded.

"She's a brave girl, Carol. She'll be just fine." I said and put Carol back to sleep. She stopped crying and after a while she even fell asleep. I left the RV once she did and got into the car. I tried to keep my eyes open for as long as I could, because I feared the nightmares that would follow when I fall asleep.

Next day, the search continued. Daryl led the team up front with me and Rick behind him, the rest followed. I watched every inch of ground carefully, not wanting to miss even one clue. Daryl motioned us to stop and I instinctively held up my rifle closer, watching the forest through the scope. I noticed the same thing as Daryl, there was a tent in the middle of the forest. Sophia could be in there. I nodded on Daryl, covering his back. Daryl moved in closer and I kept scanning the area.

When he was close enough, he took out his knife and looked behind his shoulder. I immediately moved closer and stood on the left side of the tent. If there was something in there, we got all sides covered, with Rick covering the front. Carol tried to call out to Sophia softly, but when no answer came, we were ready to go in.

Daryl slowly opened the tent and a rotten smell escaped, we all covered our noses and mouth, trying not breath any more of that smell. There was definitely something inside.

"Go, I got your six." I said to Daryl and he went inside. After a while he walked out.

"It's not her." he said and we all sighed in relief. All of a sudden, we heard a church bell from somewhere, but the noise was so loud that it kept echoing around the forest. I focused my senses to pinpoint the location. I started running through the forest, remembering my training. I took a quick look behind me. Daryl was running right behind my back and the rest followed a little bit farther behind. They probably weren't sure where exactly I was going. But I knew it, I knew exactly where the sound came from.

And I was right, soon I was out of the forest and in front of the massive church building. The door was closed, but the bell kept on ringing. I didn't wait for anything, I opened the door slowly and did a quick sweep of the room. It was a typical church with benches and a statue of Jesus in front. A long red carpet was spread from the door to the statue. The room wasn't empty, though. Three walkers were sitting on benches and if the others didn't burst into the church, the walkers wouldn't notice me. I looked behind me and gave a cursing look to Rick and Shane. Daryl was behind me the whole time and he knew better than to end my silent approach.

I killed one of the walkers that walked on the carpet and let Daryl, Rick and Shane to take care of the others. I walked around the room, looking to every goddamn place where Sophia could be hiding, nothing. I didn't even notice that the bells stopped ringing until we heard that sound once again.

We ran out of the church and around the back just to see a timer attached to the side wall. I held back an urge to shoot it to pieces.

Carol wanted to go back to the church, probably prey for Sophia's safety. I'd do the same thing if I still believed in his help, but I didn't. Not anymore.  
>I stayed outside, watching Daryl as he cleaned his arrows again. Once Carol was done, we'd move into the forest again, keep looking for the girl.<p>

"Do you think she's still out there somewhere?" I asked Daryl who didn't seem surprised by my question as much as I was.

"She's there, her tracks didn't lead out of the forest." replied Daryl with a confidence in his voice.

"Good. We'll just keep looking then." I nodded. "You're pretty damn good in tracking, where'd do learn that?"

"I had to eat." was his answer, but I wasn't surprised by its shortness. I grinned.

"Tracking was never one of my good skills, I was the one doing the killing, mostly." I explained and seemed to have gotten his attention. He stopped cleaning the arrows and put them away.

"Sniper?" he asked, with a dark look on his face. I hesitated but answered with a nod.

"Why are you asking?"

"No reason." he ended our conversation when he saw Rick walking to us.

Rick explained the next plan, which was to search for Sophia separately. I found it a good idea, we could cover more ground that way. We all got ready to move. I felt relieved to see that I was going with Daryl. Rick went the other way with Shane and his son, Carl. I wished the other group luck, but inside I wished that non of us would meet any walkers on the way. I took one last look behind me, enjoying the view of the holy building filled with dead bodies of walkers and then followed the group into the forest once again.


	6. Chapter 6

We all turned around at the sound of that single gunshot. I tried to pinpoint the gun it was fired from, but it wasn't close for me to know for sure.

"What was that?" asked the blonde woman, Andrea.

"Gunshot, obviously." replied Lori, with a distant and worried voice."You think it was them?"

"No, I don't think so. They don't carry that kind of weapon." I said, still trying to remember what weapon was it, but I couldn't.

"They wouldn't risk a gunshot." added Lori and I nodded in agreement

"No use worrying about it now, we stick to the plan." said Daryl and motioned us to move on. I waited until everyone got ahead of me and then followed, but when I noticed that Andrea and Carol were still standing at the same spot, I stopped. I didn't want to listen to their conversation. Just hearing about Sophia and how scared she must be out here made me shiver. It was my damn fault too, for not helping back at the highway, I shouldn't have left it to Rick. I kept thinking about it, that maybe if I did something, Sophia would still be here with us.

"I'll tell ya what it's worth." Daryl's voice took me back into reality and I listened as he continued: "Not a damn thing. It's a waste of time, all this hopin' and prayin'. We're gonna locate that little girl, she's gonna be just fine. Am I the only zen around here? Good lord." He turned around then and walked away, the rest followed and once again, I waited for everyone to go in front of me.

"How much further?" asked Andrea after we walked about another 15 minutes. She must've been tired by now, I could understand that. When she got her not very satisfying answer from Daryl, I saw her wander off the trails so I followed in her path, just to make sure she'd be alright. I stopped for awhile because I thought I heard a noise from somewhere. It sounded like footsteps, but it could have been an animal.

"Annie." echoed a familiar voice through the forest. I turned after the voice, but I couldn't tell where it came from.

"On your six Annie." I turned around and almost fell down when I saw the walker standing right in front of me. I regained my balance and aimed my weapon, the walker was gone though. But I tried to picture its face, I knew that walker, it was Joshua.

"What the hell?" I asked myself. I scanned the area, but I found nothing.

"It was your stupid mistake, Anne, that killed them." once again I heard his voice. I lowered my weapon and rubbed my eyes. I must've been tired after all, this couldn't be real. I wiped my forehead with the back of my arm. Maybe it was this heat and I was just hallucinating.

I tried to walk away, find the group, but then all of a sudden I saw Josh's face in front of me once again. I jumped back in surprise and tripped over a rock, falling on my back hard. My vision got blurry and the pain in my back was unbearable. I tried to roll over, get to my gun that dropped few meters away from where I was lying, I got to it just in time to notice a walker walking my way. I looked at its face, but I didn't see any resemblance in it. It wasn't Josh. My hands were shaking when I picked up the rifle and aimed. I had a silencer on, so the shot was quiet.

I noticed another pain in my ankle when I stood up. It wasn't sprained, from what I could tell, but it still hurt like hell. I tried to walk slowly, watching my every step. I didn't get very far, though, until I had to lean against a tree again, because my head started spinning. My eyes kept shutting and all I wanted right now, was to lie down and sleep.

"What is it with you women today? I swear I'm gonna leave you here." another familiar voice, it came to me very faint and I tried to think whose voice it was. I thought it was another walker and my mind was playing tricks on me again. I grabbed a weapon and aimed it at figure coming towards me.

"Easy, lady. I'm not a walker." said Daryl, lifting his hands in defense. I lowered the weapon. "You alright?" he asked, concerned. I nodded and tried to get back on my feet. I felt so weak, that I didn't even protest when he reached out a hand to help me. I put my arm around his shoulder and we walked away together, well more like he carried me. I could only hear distant voices and see blurry faces when we got back to others. And I must've blacked out soon after that.

I woke up and looked around. My eyes stopped at Carol, who was sitting next to my bed. I noticed her red eyes, she must've been crying again. I figured I was in the RV, though I've never seen the inside of it. It looked like a really small room, with a bed on which I was lying, a small table behind the corner and lots of stuff just lying around to cover the empty areas.

Carol offered me a bottle of water and I drank half of it on one go.

"I'm sorry, we should be looking for Sophia and you have to babysit me instead." I was genuinely sorry. But Carol, she just smiled at me and shook her head.

"It's alright. Besides, Daryl and Andrea went looking for her a while ago."

"That's good." I nodded.

"You must've been really exhausted, that's probably why you fainted." said Carol and I remembered that pathetic situation in the forest.

"Yeah, probably. But I'm fine now, you should get some sleep too, Carol." I said getting up from the bed. "And no complaining." I added when I saw that she wanted to say something.

"Thank you, Anne. For everything, I know you you're doing what you can to find her."

"And I will continue until I find my little soldier." I said with a confident smile, which put Carol at ease, even if only for a little while.

I walked outside just when Daryl and Andrea got back. I tried to ignore their looks and I walked over one of the cars that were on the highway. I sat on the hood of it and placed my weapon next to me.

"Hey, you alright?" asked Daryl, who walked over me.

"Yeah, I guess I am."

"So, what happened?" he didn't look at me when he asked, his eyes were focusing on the darkness of the forest.

"The same as always. My nightmares keep haunting me." I chuckles as I said it. "It sounds ridiculous, I know."

"Not really, I mean, it happens." he said it as if it was nothing.

"You know what the funny thing is? I killed many people already, I saw their faces when they died, but I didn't have nightmares about them, they never appeared."

"But your brother does."

"Yes, he does and I don't know why. He never blamed me for anything." I said, forcing myself not to cry.

"I don't think it's him, it's you. I mean, think about it, aren't you the one blaming yourself?" he said and our eyes finally met, but once they did, he turned away and walked to the RV, not waiting for my answer.

I stayed by the car, thinking it through, realizing that he is right. I was the one blaming myself. But how could I not?

I changed with Dave on the lookout. At first he didn't want to but when I told him I used to be a sniper, he trusted his rifle to me. It's been a long time since I held a sniper rifle in my hands, it felt somewhat familiar and kind of nice actually. As I held the rifle closer and looked through the scope, I could see a desert spreading around me. I grinned. The same face appeared before my eyes once again.

"He's right, Annie. And you know it." said Josh, standing in the middle of the desert.

"Yeah, I know brother. I'll let you rest in peace now." I thought to myself and lowered the sniper rifle. The scenery went back to normal, I was back at the highway, back at my mission.


	7. Chapter 7

Hey guys, happy holidays! A little late I know, but better late than never right? Oh, and also happy New Year 2012! I'm pretty sure I won't post a new chapter for a few days so I wantet to wish you all a great year. I hope you'll keep reading my fanfic and I my thanks goes every person that read it. But don't worry, this chapter is not the last one, though I don't know for how long I'll keep writing. But for now, enjoy chapter seven.

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><p>As I learnt the other night, something happened to Lori's son and she was taken to him by some girl on a horse. Yeah, I guess I didn't miss that much after all.<br>Right now, we were closing in on the farm as well, meeting with the rest of the group. I talked to Lori, wished her boy good luck and tried to comfort her that he'll be fine. He's a fighter after all, like we all are.

Soon after we had a meeting about Sophia. Hershel, the owner of the farm, provided us with a map of the area, which could make it easier to search for her. One thing I wasn't happy about, was his attitude to weapons, said we couldn't carry any around his damn farm.

"Have you ever seen a marine without a weapon? I don't think so." I said, trying to reason with him.

"This is my property and like I said I don't want any weapons on it." replied Hershel with cold voice.

"Look, we're quests here and this is your property. We will respect that." said Rick and put his gun on the hood of the truck.

"You can't be fucking serious Rick." I held my rifle closer, but Rick motioned to leave it here.

"All of 'em?" I asked, hoping I could at least keep the sidearm, but Rick nodded. I put the rifle and the sidearm on the truck. But that wasn't all and I was not a liar, so I took out another two small sidearms from under my shirt.

"What?" the rest looked at me with questioning looks. "That's all of 'em, I swear. You wanna strip search me or something?"

"That's not necessary." said Rick when he saw Shane's funny look. I took off after that and went to get ready for another trip to the forest. We waste any more time, we might as well call the whole thing off and be done with it. And I would not do that to Sophia.  
>Few minutes later I saw Daryl walking out of the house, with his crossbow over his shoulder. I figured that bloody bastard was going on solo mission. Rick followed him, asking if he'll be fine on his own.<p>

"He's not going alone." I shouted and both of them turned around.

"I don't remember asking for escort." replied Daryl with sarcasm in his voice.

"I don't remember asking for permission." I grinned. Daryl chuckled, turned around and walked away. I caught up to him in few seconds.

We walked through the forest in silence, we only spoke when we were deciding which way to go or analyzing the tracks. We soon reached what seemed to be an empty house. I held the knife in my hand stronger, ready to do some surgeries on walkers, though I'd feel more safer with a gun in my hands. As soon as we walked in, we split. I went to check the second floor, while Daryl swept the first. The stairs were rusty, so I had to walk slowly and as close to the wall as I could. There were only three rooms there, one was empty, one locked and I was about to check the third. The door was wide open and once I got close enough, I could hear husky breathing inside. Definitely a walker and luckily, the voice sounded like that of an adult man. I leaned inside, trying to see what he was doing. I only saw his back, he was just having his last meal.

I took a deep breath and moved in. The kill was quick, one strong stab through his head and brain and he was down. I looked around the room for another walker, the bathroom was empty, though. I was walking out of the room, when I heard another voice behind me. The walker tried to jump me, but I dodged and grabbed its arm. I pulled hard and the walker ended up on the floor in front of me. I turned the knife in my hand and stabbed the walker into the head. I didn't thought that one would be standing up anytime soon, or like ever. I guess I miscalculated.

"Son of a bitch." I cursed quietly and made my way back to the first floor. I didn't care about the stairs making noise, since I saw Daryl standing casually near the front door.

"Any luck?" he asked. I shook my head.

"Just two walkers, no Sophia, though." I replied and walked out after him. He called out Sophia's name, but no answer came.

"I'm gonna look around a bit." I said, pointing towards the back of the house. Daryl nodded and I walked away.  
>The back was clear, no signs of walkers and no signs of Sophia either. I moved a little into the forest, just to be sure. I was surprised to see clear footprints in the ground. There were two kinds, that means two people, but both of them where two big to be Sophia's. The prints let to the farm, so I guessed it was someone from there.<p>

"Where the bloody hell are you, girl?" I asked a rhetorical question and sat on ground, leaning my back against a tree. I looked up to the sky, it'll be getting dark soon. We didn't get any closer today, once again.  
>I knew that if I got close to anyone, I'd just get hurt and I did it anyway. I should have just stay on my own. Maybe I'd have a better chance on my own. I'd get out of this country by now, maybe find someplace where the infection hasn't spread, yet. But no, I always have to help others first.<p>

"I'd take Afghanistan over this shithole anytime." I said out loud, looking over my shoulder.

"No shit." replied Daryl, walking towards me. He noticed the footprints too, but I shook my head. No use worrying about them.

"Do you really think she's still out here?"

"Yeah, I do. She couldn't just disappear. Maybe the girl's smarter than we thought. Found herself a safe place somewhere. Just waiting for us to find her."

"Maybe she even turned into a solo hunter, hell she'll probably kill all those walkers herself." I laughed. "That's what I'd do anyway."

"Then why didn't you? Hell, you had many chances and you didn't take 'em."

"Yeah, why didn't I? And why didn't you? Why are you looking for some girl instead of your brother?

"Hell if I know. But when I do, I'll let you know."

"It's a deal then." I reached out a hand to him and he took it. We closed the deal with a shook of our hands.

Then, Daryl pulled me up on my feet, but he used more strength than I thought. We stood there, only inches apart, looking into each other's eyes. We didn't move and the forest became quiet as well. No wind or birds to cover the sound of my heartbeats.  
>Maybe this is what we were looking for. For someone who'd care again. I tried to push everyone back, not realizing that being alone doesn't make it better, only worse. Maybe he felt the same way or it was all just a game to him. I leaned closer and pressed my lips against his. He kissed me back almost immediately, surprising me with gentleness and passion that reflected in his every touch. I soon realized that everything around us disappeared, only the two of us reminded. And it was a mistake.<p>

He pulled back, grabbing his crossbow and firing in that one movement. Only when I turned around I saw that a walker was creeping behind my back and I never noticed.

"Son of a..." I didn't finish and turned to walked away. I thought I was done with these mistakes, but I was so wrong. I kept repeating them over and over again.

I didn't turn around, but I knew that Daryl was walking behind me all the time until we got back to the farm. And as if he understood my feelings, he parted with me without a word and went his own way. He probably went to update the search, though there was nothing to tell. I, on the other hand, ended up in the stable, alone, promising myself for god knows how many times already, that I wouldn't care about them anymore, about any of them.

Maybe it was really time for me to leave, for good.


	8. Chapter 8

New chapter guys, I hope you'll like it. I've been thinking what to write in the next chapters, if I should wait for the series to air and continue with the original story, or make up my own continuation. I think that'd be the best, since I can't always wait for new episode to air and February is still far. Well, I guess we'll see.

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><p>I woke up in an empty stall. For a second I couldn't remember falling asleep here, but then I remembered. I wanted to be alone, that's why I came here. I was so pathetic, couldn't deal with my own mistakes, all I could do was to hide and try to forget. I was a bloody coward after all.<br>I stood up, brushed straws out of my cloths and hair and walked out. The farm was so peaceful early in the morning. I felt like I was on a vacation, relaxing far away from humanity and all the stress of the cities. I laughed at that thought.  
>Most of the group was still asleep, the only morning bird beside me was Carol. She smiled at me when she saw me coming. I smiled back, feeling a bit uneasy. It would be so much easier if she hated me.<p>

"Good morning, Anne." she said and handed me a cup. I smelled the dark drink that filled the cup, the smell of coffee brushed my senses. I felt more awake already. I took a sip and handed the cup back to Carol. She definitely looked like she needed it more than I did. I bet she was crying again, thinking about Sophia.

"Need help?" I noticed that she was already making breakfast for the group. Since I already decided to join them at least for today, I guess I could help out a bit. Though somehow, all I could think about right now, was the right moment to leave the group. But I had to find Sophia first, I needed to do at least one thing right. My thoughts stopped at Daryl, I wondered where he was right now and if he already forgot about yesterday. Would he feel something if I left?

"Could you take this to Lori and Carl?" asked Carol after a while. I nodded and took two plates from her.  
>I found them inside the house, Lori was just helping Carl get dressed. I knocked on the opened doors.<p>

"I brought you breakfast." I said, walking inside, putting the plates on the table. "I knew you'd pull through, buddy. Good to see you're okay."

Carl smiled at me with such cheerfulness, I started to pity him and us, everyone who was still alive, fighting these monsters.  
>I smiled back at him and turned to leave, but Lori stopped me.<p>

"Could you keep him company for a while? I need to find Rick and don't want to leave him alone." her request took me by surprise, but I nodded awkwardly.

"Mom, I'm not a kid anymore." Carl tried to protest but Lori stopped with with a lifted finger, which made him drop back onto bed. I sat on the chair next to him, looking out the window, trying to find a topic we could talk about.

"You're still looking for Sophia, right?" asked Carl before I could say anything.

"Of course we are, Carl. And we won't stop looking until we find her."

"I want to help, too. She's my friend." he looked determinated, those two must've been close. Well, being the only kids in the group now, I guess they sticked together.

"Don't worry, Carl. As soon as you're better, we'll go look for her together. But I think that we'll find her even before that." I gave him a reasuring smile. He nodded. "So, wanna hear some war stories?"

Carl laughed and sat more comfortably in the bed, listening closely to every word I said.  
>We talked for a long time, when finally Lori came back into the room.<p>

"Rick and Shane went to look for Sophia. Daryl went too, just so you know." said Lori, updating the situation for me. I nodded and walked away. I decided not to go look for her, since I don't know which way those guys went, I might just end up following in their tracks. I stopped on an empty land with a great view ahead. I sat on the grass, closed my eyes and just listened. After a while I started to feel tired and eventually I must have fallen asleep.

A loud gunshot woke me up. My mind identified the shot immediately, sniper rifle. I ran as fast as I could back into farm, just to find Daryl being carried into the house by Rick and Shane. He was uncounscious, but I didn't see any wounds from the rifle, I sighted in relief. I didn't ask any questions, I just watched as his wounds were cleaned and when he finally woke up and looked at me, I walked away.

I didn't go far thought. I stayed in the hall, leaning against the wall. When everyone cleared out, I found myself in his room again.  
>I stood by the window, looking out. I listened to Daryl's breathing, one of the things that reminded me he's still alive. I turned around and sat beside him on the bed.<p>

"What the fuck were you thinking?" I said softly, trying not to wake him up. "You should've asked me to come along."  
>I signed and right after that, he opened his eyes.<p>

"Sorry, I didn't want to wake you."

He shook his head and slowly sat on the bed. "Wasn't risking my life enough?"

"No, it wasn't. You're not the only one who wants to find Sophia. That girl trusted me and I failed her."

"So what? Getting killed won't help her in any way."

"Why does it always have to be you risking your life for another?" I asked mostly for myself, but he still heard me.

"And why does it matter what I do? It's non of your damn business." he sounded upset. But wasn't I supposed to be the one mad right now?

"It is my business when I can't even protect the one I care about!" there, I said it. "You remind me of everything that I've lost and I just know that I don't want to lose it again! Why couldn't I stay away from you? It would have been so much easier if I just got bitten back in Atlanta, too. I'd be dead by now and non of this would matter anymore!" by the time I finished, I was shouting. My voice kept echoing in my ears, but Daryl just sat there, listening. When I realized what I've just said, I wanted to walk away and never look at him again. But he didn't give me a chance. When I turned around to leave, he caught my wrist and pulled me closer to him. I had to support my body with one hand and knee on bed, so I wouldn't fall on him.

It felt like eternity, our faces were inches apart, non of us said a word. I was afraid to even breath and when I realized that I was dodging his eyes the whole time, I couldn't bare it not to look anymore. The gentle look in his blue eyes surprised me the most. And the passion that reflected in them made me shiver. I suddenly wanted to pull away from him, but once I did, he only pulled me closer. Without a warning, he pressed his lips against mine. His kissed me with such urge that it almost overwhelmed me. When we parted, he looked into my eyes again. That one look took all my restraints away, everything I told myself not to do again just washed away because he was here, with me. And no matter what I did, I couldn't fight my feelings. This time it was me who kissed him. He put one hand on my wrist and lay me on the bed. I never thought I'd do something stupid like falling in love, not when the world looks like this. But for now I was unable to think about anything besides Daryl.

But when the time comes, when we find Sophia...that will be my cue to leave and who knows, maybe Daryl will leave too. Just how selfish have I become?


	9. Chapter 9

Sorry for the late post of the new chapter, but school has been keeping me busy lately. I'll try to write the new chapter as soon as possible, though.

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><p>I got dressed and quietly left the room, hoping not to meet anyone on my way out. I took one last look at Daryl, who was sleeping soundly on the back.<br>It was still dark outside, the sun was just starting to come out. I went for a walk, breathing in the cold breeze. This was the only time I could get some, since the days were so damn hot.

I walked around the house and reached the stalls, hesitating whether I should walk inside. If I did, maybe I'd do the same as Daryl, take a horse and dash into the forest. Daryl brought back Sophia's doll, that was a lead to follow. But with every day that passed, the chances of finding her alive were getting slim. I couldn't stand that hopeless feeling inside me. I wanted to do something so badly.

Before I'd express my rage on the stalls, I headed back to the camp, just outside the house and waited for the rest of the group to wake up.

They were all fully awake in an hour or so, I stopped counting after fifteen minutes of waiting. We had a quick breakfast, before we started the serious talk.

Rick was holding Sophia's doll in his hand, placing it on the hood of the truck. I watched it, picturing Sophia holding it, standing here with us. We waited a few more minutes until Daryl joined us. I averted his eyes, but he seemed to be doing the same. Before raising suspicious, I quickly cut into chase.

"So, we have a proper lead now, it's only a matter of time before we find her."

"If we find her, I mean one doll doesn't mean anything. It could've been lying there for days." said Shane, obviously uninterested in the whole situation. I ignored his comment.

"I'll go look for her today." I said, but Rick shook his head.

"No, it's too dangerous to go alone."

"You think I care if it's dangerous? Don't you see were wasting our time here? We have a better chance if we split up, or are you scared of being alone in the forest?" I grinned at him. His expression was stayed cold.

"We split up and what? More of us get lost, it's not worth it." Shane raised his voice, aiming his annoyance at me. I gave him a disgusted look, he was starting to piss me off.

"Not worth it? You mean it's not worth looking for her anymore?" I asked, calmly. He turned his eyes away, refusing to answer. "Your silence proves my point."

"There is no point. She could be already dead, for what we know, or she could turned into one of those things. I say we let it go, focus on what we do from now." as he finished I was already standing only inches apart from him, But before my fist could reach his face, Rick's grip stopped me. I tried to pull my arm from his hold, but it only made him hold stronger.

Suddenly, Shane was trying to keep his balance, as Daryl punched him from the other side. I couldn't hide a grin on my face as I watched Shane wiping the blood of his lip. Daryl stumbled as well, groaning in pain. I caught him halfway from falling to his knees. He pushed my hand away.

"Nobody asked for your help anyway. We'll find her on our own." said Daryl, turning around to walk away.

I was glad that Carol didn't see this whole scene, it would probably break her heart even more. She's trying to be tough for the group, but I know how hard it is to lose family.

I caught up to Daryl as he walked towards the stalls. I could only guess what his plan was, but whatever it was, I intended to stop him.

"I hope you're not planning on going."

He gave me a questioning look. "Who'll go if not me?"

"I will and you know that. You're wounded, how far do you think you'll get?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You can't track her in the forest without me."

"I intend to try. I'm not giving up on her Daryl, not me, not anymore." I tried to sound calm and reasonable. He finally turned to face me. His eyes were cold, piercing through mine as if trying to see what's going on inside my head.

"I won't let you go alone." he said after a while and his expression changed. He looked concerned.

"Thanks for your concern, but I'll be just fine. I promise I won't get lost." I said with a bit of sarcasm in my voice.

"I didn't mean that." his voice became soft, quiet.

"Walkers are my least concern, Daryl." I replied with a laugh. Actually, if I met a walker on the way, I wouldn't be satisfied until I saw its rotting corpse on the ground, its head pierced by my bullet.

Daryl opened his mouth as to say something, but he couldn't find the right words. Then, he reached his hand to his back, taking his crossbow.

"Take this, conserve the ammo." he said, handing me his crossbow. For a few seconds, I stood there without a word, my eyes wide open, staring at his weapon of choice. Was he actually giving me his crossbow? "Take it or leave it."

I reached my hand to take it, and then I tried its balance and aim. Satisfied, I nodded my head.

"Thanks, this will help." I looked at him for the last time, before leaving. I decided to go on my own, I was faster that way. I considered taking a horse though, but I'd have to ask Hershel first. Better than nothing, though. "I'll be on my way then."

I turned on my heels, walking out.

"Wait." shouted Daryl to my back. I quickly turned around, my heart started beating faster for some reason. "Just, be careful."

I nodded and look down to the ground, a slight disappointed flashed on my face so I tried to hide it by turning away once again. But before I knew it, he grabbed my elbow and spun me around, then without a warning pressed his lips against mine. Desire and urge reflected in his kiss. I wrapped my free arm around his neck, kissing him back.

After a while, I pulled away, worried that if I didn't stop, I wouldn't leave anytime today. He gave out a disappointed sigh, but he let go of my hand and I walked away, looking behind my shoulder to meet his eyes as he stood there, watching me until I was out of his sight.

I get into a bit of disagreement with Hershel, when I asked him for a horse. It seemed like he didn't trust anyone of us anymore, but my arguments were convincing enough.

It's been a while since I've ridden a horse, but I got a hang of it pretty quickly. I tried not to think about the past, the time when my parents were still alive. I shook my head, focusing on the path ahead. After half an hour, I reached the spot where Daryl found Sophia's doll. I rode around it, going further into the forest.

I couldn't see any visible tracks. Maybe Daryl would have more luck, but he wasn't here.

After another hour or so, I had to stop to take a break. My muscles were sore from riding for so long. I leaned against a tree, while drinking some water. The horse got uneasy all of a sudden. I patted him on the back, trying to calm him down. But then I realized why he was like this. I listened for a few seconds and then I finally caught the sound of footsteps approaching. Someone was running near here. I turned after the sound, thinking while sitting back on the saddle. I couldn't be sure, but my instincts were telling me that it wasn't a walker. By the sound, it could be Sophia, the steps were too soft for an adult, but I could be wrong. Still, I didn't hesitate and rushed my horse after the lead. Whoever it was, this couldn't be a walker.


	10. Chapter 10

I stopped my horse when I couldn't hear the footsteps anymore. I dropped down, gripping Daryl's crossbow with both hands. I didn't want to risk revealing my presence to walkers, but I couldn't walk around here forever. I inhaled deeply, considering my options. I came up with only one and it wasn't one of my best.

"Sophia!" I shouted and my voice dangerously echoed in the forest. I halted as something moved further behind the trees. I braced myself for encounter with a walker.  
>And I was right, a dead man came creeping from the shadows. I sighed, half with relief and half with disappointment. One good aim and the arrow struck his head.<p>

I checked the forest for more of them, but I saw nothing. And then, right at the moment when I wanted to turn around and walk away, I heard other footsteps on the right side.  
>I turned my head that way, crossbow aiming at anything that would try to jump me. But the figure that walked towards me was too small for an adult and walked too flawless to be a walker.<p>

My heart started beating faster and for unknown reason my body started shaking. I lowered the crossbow, not wanting to scare her.  
>Tears rolled down her cheeks as she stared at me in surprise and relief. Without a word I ran towards her, dropping the crossbow halfway and wrapping my arms around her. She wrapped hers around my neck as I lifted her off the ground.<p>

I finally had Sophia in my arms, she was safe and she was alright, at least I hoped. I checked her briefly for any signs of bites, but I couldn't find anything except minor bruises. She looked pale and she probably didn't eat much during these days, let alone drink without being scared of the infection.

She wouldn't let me go even after I seated her onto the saddle. When I was finally seated as well and I was sure that she wouldn't fall off, I rushed the horse through the forest, leading him by instinct alone.

Sophia was quietly sobbing the whole way. She was still in shock and asking her questions wouldn't probably give me many answers.

The road back was long, I even wondered how could I get this far. When I finally noticed the farm in the distance, my muscles were sore and my eyelids were heavy. But I didn't let it show on me, since I was well aware of Sophia's condition right now.

First person to meet us was surprisingly Daryl. I pushed the thought that he was waiting for me all this time aside. At first he didn't seem to notice Sophia in my arms, or maybe he thought it was something else, no wonder since she was curled into a small ball.

But once he noticed his face lit up with, what? Happiness? Maybe, but since I haven't seen his happy I couldn't tell. Daryl immediately grabbed bottle of water from the camp and hurried towards us. No one else was around, but it didn't surprise me. Shane was probably teaching them to shoot.

I slid Sophia from my arms into Daryl's. She didn't seem to notice the difference. At first she refused to drink the water, probably still thinking it could be infected, but when we reassured her it was clean, she drank it whole.

That was when the rest of the group came back. Carol was the first one to notice and she rushed to us, tears were already filling her eyes. Sophia was back on her feet as well and it seemed as all her exhaustion washed away at the sight of her mother.

I watched them embrace each other, both crying their hearts out. I smiled unconsciously as the rest surrounded them, clapping their hands and calling Sophia's name.

I rubbed my face with both hands, forcing back my own tears. I wasn't crying because Sophia was finally back, I wasn't crying because of the scene that was playing in front of my eyes, the reason for my tears was somewhere else. I was finally able to do something right, correct my own mistakes.

Without a word I handed Daryl his crossbow. I nodded in silent 'thank you' and turned to the horse. I patted his back, he must've been thirsty. But before I could take care of him, I was stopped when Daryl grabbed my arm and pulled me forward.

"Carol." was all he said and only then I noticed Sopia's mother walking towards me, with Sophia by her side. Before I could protest, they both hugged me at the same time, making me uneasy. I hesitated, but then I placed one hand on Carol's back and the other on Sophia's head.

"Thank you for saving her, thank you." sobbed Carol, hugging me tightly.

Later that day, I was sitting in the forest. I didn't know why I keep returning there, but it became something like a memorial of some sort for me. And I thought that nobody would come looking for me here, but there was one person who'd probably find me anywhere, even if it wasn't his intention.

I let out a heavy sigh when I felt his hand on my shoulder. It's not that I wasn't happy to see him, but I knew I had to make a decision. And as much as I hated leaving Daryl behind of all people, I knew I couldn't force him to go with me.

"It's good to see her back." he was referring to Sophia. I nodded firmly, averting his eyes at all costs.

"Yeah, it is. What are you going to do now?" I had to ask him.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Hell if I know."

"Don't you want to look for your brother?"

I've finally met his distant eyes. I saw the same uncertainty in them as in mine, which I wasn't sure was a good thing. He turned his head around, watching the farm behind us.

"You know I'm not gonna stop you." he hide his emotions behind the same stoned expression as always.

"That's the bloody problem, Daryl." I knew my words didn't give sense. Thoughts in my head whirled around so fast, I couldn't grasp any of them and make a good reason to leave. Was there a reason for me to leave? But seeing more people get hurt or die, that was the most frightening part.

"If you're so worried about them, wouldn't you want to protect them?" his words surprised me. But there was something about them, that made me hesitate.

_Why have you enlisted if you can't bare the sight of people dying around you?_ I remembered the words of my brother. It was around the time of our first mission together. A marine died on that day, I almost jeopardized the mission with my emotional breakdown. I thought he was gonna make me quit, but he gave a second chance. So I trained, not only physically, but mentally as well. I braced myself every time I saw someone get wounded, pushing all the emotions away, locking into an invisible box in my mind. It helped, until I lost almost everyone I cared about in one single hour.

And now I was back at the training grounds, but the person standing in front of me wasn't my brother. The look in his eyes was the same though, that icy look that didn't show how much he cared.

I pictured the open box again, shoving all my burden inside, locking it two times, just to be sure. I needed to become the cold blooded bastard again, with my heart open to only one person. And I needed to stop over thinking every little thing. Maybe everything was meant to happen for a reason.

He must've noticed my resolve showing on my face, because he let out a smirk. I grabbed his reached out hand and he pulled me up.

"It's time to get serious." I growled, not letting go of his hand. I brushed my lips against his in a light kiss, then walked back to the farm with him by my side.

At least we were all together again and for now, we were all safe. But at that time, I was still unaware of the danger that almost breathed on our skin.


	11. Chapter 11

Sophia's survival in the forest was a bloody miracle. With her small figure, she was able to keep low profile and luckily for her, she found an abandoned house somewhere further and stayed there until more walkers came her way. Then she ran through the forest once again until I found her.

She was happy to have her doll back, Carol washed it for her, awaiting her return. And when she finally held the doll in her arms, she wouldn't let go of her all day.  
>Few days later, when she was finally back at full strength, she came to me, smiling but when she was close enough, she hesitated. I was sitting in the forest again, my peaceful place.<br>I noticed her worries, but her fear from the forest wouldn't help her in the future. Who knows how long we could stay here. I was hoping a few more weeks.  
>So I reached out my hand to her, waiting for her to come closer. I gave her a reassuring smile, but when she still didn't move an inch, I stood up and leaned against the tree.<p>

"Are you afraid of the forest, Sophia?" I asked in a low voice. She nodded firmly and backed away a few steps. "What are most afraid of in the forest?"

"Walkers." her voice was shaking, she tightened her grip on the doll.

"I'm scared of the walkers, too. We're all scared. No matter what anybody tells you, we're all afraid. And you know what it means when you're scared?"

She shook her head, her eyes focused on me. I walked closer towards her and knelt to meet her gaze. "It means you're not stupid."  
>I saw her eyes lit up a bit. I held out my hand once again and this time she took it. I gestured towards the trees in the distance with question in my eyes. She looked that way and nodded, inhaling deeply.<p>

We walked on the path I knew very well by now. Branches of the trees shook in a familiar way as if greeting me. Somewhere ahead I could hear the river, splashing of the water against the rocks. It was such a peaceful sound.

"I'm not scared anymore." said Sophia and gave me a proud smile. "The forest is nice when I'm with you."

"It is, right? But let's head back for now, you're mom will be worried."

"Will we come here again?"

"If you want to, yes. Maybe we can take Carl with us, too."

Her lips curved into a bright smile and she nodded. While we were coming back, she no longer had to hold onto my hand.

I returned her to Carol safely, than met up with Daryl and the rest outside.  
>The mood seemed to be better now, that Sophia was back. Everyone was chatting and laughing cheerfully, enjoying the meal. I sat next to Daryl, who was once against cleaning his arrows. His wounds must've been almost healed since he was able to move more freely.<br>Sitting here like this with him, without any worries and walkers luring around, seemed like a perfect day for me.

But when the night came and I couldn't seem to fall asleep, I knew something was about to go wrong. I only felt this nervous at the beginning of a mission, unaware of the danger ahead, with enemies crawling from everywhere. It was the same here, you couldn't know where they'd come from, let alone how many would come. At least they didn't know how to use weapons.

I rubbed my arms with both hands even though I wasn't cold. The night was warm and the sky was clear.

"Can't sleep?" asked a familiar voice behind me. My body was immediately enveloped with warm as his hands wrapped around my waist. I leaned back against Daryl's chest, listening to his calm heartbeat.

"I wonder why, Sophia's back, we're safe here. What is there to worry about?" I tried to sound calm, prove myself wrong, that these feelings I felt pilling up inside were just doubts, not warnings. But I've already made mistakes, letting my guard down and ignoring my instincts would just follow the same example.

"You never know." his answer was unclear, but it proved my point. We weren't as safe here as we thought, after all.

All those thoughts seemed to fade away as his lips brushed against my neck, moving upwards until they reached my ear. With one quick movement of his arms, we were facing each other. His lips slammed against mine, leaving me unaware of my surroundings. As long as I was in his arms, I was safe. There was nothing that could harm me.

Before I knew it I was lying on the ground in a tent, melting under his touch on my skin as he moved his hands under my shirt. I had my arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer to me. I wanted to feel his body press against mine, I needed to feel him close to me.

He stopped suddenly, his hands still on my bare back. I pulled back, watching him inquiringly. I opened my mouth to say something, but he stopped me as his finger pressed against his lips. For a while, I couldn't understand, but then I heard it too.

It was quiet, I had to listen truly carefully to hear it, those silent thumping sounds from somewhere in the distance. I thought it could be rain, but it hasn't rained here in weeks and I recall a clear night sky, I could even see few stars. No, this was something else.

Daryl reached out to grab his crossbow. I pulled my shirt back on and walked out, following the sounds that were getting louder with every step we took. And then it stopped, nothing but silence surrounded us once again. Unable to pinpoint its location now, we stopped.

I heard Daryl curse under his breath as he drew the first arrow.

"Walkers!" I yelled without second thoughts, hoping to wake up at least Rick or Shane, they could take care of the others. But we needed weapons, with only a knife in my hands I couldn't do much and Daryl's crossbow had its limits, too.

I caught a glimpse of Shane moving behind my back. He carried a shotgun and luckily, my rifle. Corners of my mouth curved into a smile as I grabbed it in midair, aiming while turning around. Without night vision, I had to rely on instinct while firing.

Screams coming from the house cut through the fires of our guns. Without thinking I charged forward, taking down two walkers in the process. And here I was thinking why there were so few of the in the open. They already got into the house.

The front door were still closed but I didn't slow down, I charged right through them, slamming into them with my right shoulder. I ignored the pain that shot through it and followed the screams. I turned at the corner and came into the living room, taking aim and firing at the walker. He had the boy that lived here pinned down on the ground. "Bloody sod." I mutter.

The boy didn't seem to be injured, he nodded at me in thanks. But then I heard him scream once again, too late though, because I was already pushed back by another walker. My back hit the wall, hard. The pain in my shoulder got even stronger as I struggled to keep his hungry mouth away from me. I was able to push him back for a second, but he charged me again immediately. These things didn't know pain, they only saw their next meal in front of them. I traced my rifle, it flew in the open space in the room. I dodged the walker, pushing him aside long enough for me to grab the gun and fire. I missed, the bullet only pierced his leg. I adjusted on the ground and fired again, this time aiming a lot higher.

The glass shattered behind me and third walker leaped inside. They just kept on coming. I got back on my feet as quickly as I could with the growing pain in my back and shoulder. But then I realized, the pain didn't come from any of them. I failed to notice how fast that walker moved, or how short the distance between us was already. I could've been my blurry vision, the dark or the rapid firing of weapons outside and inside that I didn't notice him, but now it was too late.

I slammed the rifle into his head, the walker stumbled back. Without aiming, I fired and this time, I didn't miss. My eyes fixed on my left arm, the wound wasn't deep, it was only a scratch. Adrenaline rushed into my veins with every next shot I heard, with every scream that followed. I ignored everything else, I had to make sure Sophia was alright. I found her in one of the rooms, crouching on the ground with Carol. They weren't injured, thank god.

The firing stopped and everything went silent for a while. I walked out of the room just when Shane started yelling something at Hershel. I couldn't make out the words, the only thing I heard was my unstable heartbeat. At first I thought it was still adrenaline, but then I realized that my body shook with terror.

_The order was to kill anyone who was bitten, scratched or even spited on by walkers. _

_He's been bitten. So? Just kill him. _ _You think you can cure him or something? _

My own words kept echoing in my head. My teary eyes fixed on the rifle in my hand, my finger still shaking on the trigger. Just lift your arm and pull it, it'll be over.

"Annie?" I heard his voice echoing in the hall, he ran to me, unaware of anything that happened. He was happy to see me safe, but I wasn't. Just as he reached me, my knees gave up and I fell onto floor.

"It's over, Daryl." I managed to whisper between sobs. He looked at me as if I was crazy, but I just looked at the trail of blood on my arm and he understood.

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><p>Well, I hope it wasn't too much of a surprise. Actually, I bet it was. I never wanted to drag this story for longer than maybe five chapters and look at it now, we're already at eleventh. And maybe there will still be more, I mean, who knows.<p> 


	12. Chapter 12

"No." that one word sent shivers through me. I wanted to believe that word, I wanted to believe it wasn't real, non of this. But the reality was cruel and it hit me harder than I thought it actually would.  
>Watching Daryl's expression change, from calmness to surprise and then anger, I closed my eyes, letting the tears fall down my cheeks. I opened them again when I heard Daryl running off and then yelling. I managed to stand up, wiping the tears away.<p>

I walked into the kitchen just to see Daryl aiming his crossbow at Hershel, rage burning in his eyes.

"Daryl, calm down." Rick raised his voice but it was of no use. Daryl didn't back away. "What is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me?" shot at him Daryl after a while, not letting his eyes off Hershel who didn't seem as surprised as Rick and the rest. "He knew they were here, he kept them in the barn!"

Daryl was right, when we heard the coming, the only place where they could've have come from was the barn, but it didn't want to believe it, I thought there was another explanation. But Hershel's expression said it all.

"You risked everyone's lives. And for what?" I walked towards Hershel, placing one hand on Daryl's arm both to keep my balance and to keep him calm.

Hershel didn't answer and he didn't look into my eyes, either.

"Is that true, Hershel?" asked Rick, joining in. It seemed Hershel was only going to answer Rick, because he nodded at his question.

"They're our family, we couldn't just kill them." he said, breathing heavily. "But now it doesn't matter, you already did it."

He seemed to by angry about it, which only made mine and Daryl's rage to grow. I knew Daryl was angry on my behalf, but I was angry because of everybody else. I didn't find Sophia just to put her into more danger.

"You must've known they were already gone." no matter how calm I wanted to keep my voice, it broke in the end. "There's no going back."

"I'll kill you, you son of a bitch!" Daryl tossed his crossbow aside and grabbed Hershel, but Rick and Shane pushed him back. "She's gonna die because of you and your stupid walkers!"

I felt their eyes turn to me, but I kept my head low. I didn't want to be the centre of attention and I didn't want their pity either. It was my choice to stay, my choice to risk myself for them. The consequences were mine.

"What?" Sophia's shaking voice sounded behind me. I turned around to meet her gaze. "You're going to die?"

"I'm sorry. I won't be able to protect you anymore." I said with a wry smile. Sophia shook her head firmly, running to me, hugging me and crying into my shirt.

Nobody spoke afterwards, there was nothing to be said, not words to make this right.  
>And for once, I wasn't ready to die. I got attached to this place, to Sophia, to Daryl and the rest of the group as well. And still, it wasn't enough to keep me going.<p>

"It's alright, I'll leave." I said after a while of silence. We were sitting in the kitchen, discussing what to do. I found this whole situation pointless, since everybody knew what was going to happen. Daryl wasn't around, he left as soon as Sophia walked into the kitchen and found out I was dying. I didn't blame him, hell, I'd do the same thing.

"This is goodbye then." what else was I supposed to say? But I decided to say goodbye to everyone individually, shaking their hands, hugging them, which wasn't usually my thing. They all said how much I've helped them, expressing their gratitude for my sacrifice. And it was funny, I always thought I would die while helping someone else, but who'd thought it would be during zombie apocalypse.  
>The boy whom I saved also came to express his gratitude, but there was nothing he could actually say and I didn't want him to say anything at all. When I said goodbye to Lori, Carl walked over to me, his cheeks were wet from tears.<p>

Without a word I hugged him. "It's your duty now, to take care of Sophia for me."

He nodded, sobbing quietly as he hugged me back. "I will."

The hardest person to say goodbye to was Sophia and Carol. They were both in the same room where I found them. Carol seemed to be calmer now, than she was before. She wasn't crying as much as Sophia. She gave me a hug and then let me kneel beside Sophia's bed.

"You need to be strong, Sophia." I said softly, stroking her hair.

"I don't want to be strong." she replied between sobs, turning her head away from me.

"Look at me." I raised my voice enough for her to lift her head. "You need to be strong for your mother. It doesn't matter if I'm not here, you still have her and you love her, don't you?"

She nodded. "I'm going to miss you." Then she jumped off the bed, right into my arms, wrapping her arms around my neck.

"I'm going to miss you too."

Daryl was standing outside, unfocused, looking into the distance. I walked past him and stopped a few meters ahead, with my back to him. I didn't need to say anything, just keep walking. I knew he would follow.

When I was far enough in the forest, navigating only with instincts, I stopped. I was sure Daryl would find his way back without problems, if it was me, I'd get lost on my way back to the farm. Halfway through the forest though, he grabbed my hand and I wasn't sure if it was because of the dark or because he wanted to do it.

"Thank you, Daryl." once again, I couldn't keep my voice calm. "For everything."

He didn't say a word for a long time, just stood there with my hand in his. The first thing he did after the silence was, that he wrapped his arms around me from the back. I rested my head against his, feeling the wet tears on his face, which caught me by surprise.

"It should be me, not you." his voice was soft, brushing against my skin. "I don't want to lose you."

His words were sincere and I couldn't hold back anymore. My knees gave up and not because of the fever. The only thing that stopped me from falling were Daryl's arms.

"I don't wanna die." tears started flowing uncontrollably from my eyes. Daryl was the only person with whom I could be honest.

"I know." he held me more tightly, even when I turned around to bury my head into his chest, he didn't let go of me.

I wasn't able to say anything anymore, my vision was blurry and I couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't. And I didn't care, because the important moment was right now and I never wanted to let Daryl go.

I don't know how much time has passed, but when I opened my eyes again, I suddenly realized how quickly the infection spread. And it was just a scratch. My whole body was trembling by now and I was sweating from the fever that got even worse.

"You have to go, please." I said as I pulled away from him. He seemed hesitant to let me go though.  
>"I'll be back for you." his voice sounded more like a whisper now as he once more took me in his arms and kissed my lips for the last time.<p>

I knew what he meant by that and I was happy to hear it'd be him. After all, he'd never leave me rot in this place. He'll take care of my proper burial and I was grateful for that.

"Goodbye, Daryl." no more words were needed, even though we weren't the types to express our love with words, we knew how the other felt. It was the most beautiful kind of relationship. But as I learn in my short life, all the good things come to an end.

We backed away, slowly, until he disappeared in the shadows of the forest. I listened until his footsteps were gone completely, then took out my sidearm, the only thing I kept when I left, expect my brother's and mine dog tags. I took them in one hand, squeezing them tightly until my knuckles turned white.

With a shaking finger on the trigger, I raised the gun to my temple. Better a quick death, I reminded myself.

The last image I had in my mind was of my brother, I would soon join him and we'd be together again. I pulled the trigger.

He stopped in his tracks as the gunshot enveloped the forest, echoing in his ears. It was over, her battle was over now. And he hated that more than anything.

He would never thought that he could feel like this, that he could fall in love. It was the most pathetic thing for him and yet, it happened. And he didn't mind feeling vulnerable sometimes, maybe even weak, because she was there. He could watch her smile, struggle and cry. And she was only his, he was the one to hold her, to touch her and kiss her. But no more.

The pain shot through his hand, but it was nothing compared to what he felt in his chest. The blood dripping from his knuckles was nothing compared to the bleeding of his heart and his eyes.  
>He even thought about killing himself, but she'd hate him for that. And there were still things he needed to take care of, people to take care of. She didn't say it out loud but it was his responsibility now. And he'd grant that wish for her. It was the least he could do for her.<p>

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><p>I'm sorry it took so long to upload this chapter, but I didn't have time to write it. And honestly, I wasn't looking forward to writing it at all, since this is the last chapter. But I hope you enjoyed this short story and thank you for all the reviews. And also, my thanks goes to everyone who read my story, I really appreaciate it guys. Thank you so much.<p> 


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